The European Parliament voted on Tuesday in favor of granting a loan of up to 35 billion euros to Ukraine, which will be financed from the profits generated by Russian assets frozen in Europe, reports AFP.
The text was adopted with 518 votes for, 56 against and 61 abstentions.
“Russia must pay for the destruction of Ukraine,” said the rapporteur of the voted text, Swedish MEP Karin Karlsbro (Renew, liberals).
“By supporting Ukraine, we are investing in our security,” said Romanian MEP Siegfried Mureşan (EPP, Christian Democrats).
The French MEP Thierry Mariani (Patriots for Europe, extreme right) denounced, on the other hand, the loan, saying that it is “imposed by the (European) Commission to keep alive a state already affected by corruption long before the war”.
The EU Council, the body that represents member states, already gave the green light on October 9 and will have to give its final approval before the first payments, which would be made in early 2025.
Russian assets worth around 280 billion euros were frozen in the EU following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, of which around 90% are located in Belgium, the headquarters of the international depository body Euroclear.
These assets are expected to generate between 2.5 and 3 billion euros per year, which can help arm Ukraine and finance post-war reconstruction.
The G7 countries agreed on a global loan of up to 50 billion dollars, or about 45 billion euros, in favor of Ukraine, financed from the interest produced by these frozen Russian assets.
Source: www.cotidianul.ro
